‘Unsightly Tarmac’ Just A Temporary Repair

It has been confirmed tarmac which has replaced paving slabs in Market Harborough town centre is only temporary.

Residents and Harborough District Council branded the patching ‘unsightly’ and questioned why the pavement on Church Square had not been restored properly following emergency electricity works.

National Grid says the work is a temporary measure following repairs after a power cut and its engineers will return to the area once replacement slabs have been sourced, within 6-8 weeks.

The scene on Church Square

Some of the slabs, which had been previously lifted, could not be reused as they had concrete bonded to them and the firm says it is liaising with the Council to source replacement slabs from the original supplier.

A National Grid Electricity Distribution spokesperson said: “We’d like to reassure residents that the tarmac seen on Church Square is a temporary measure.

“This allowed us to reopen the footpath quickly after undertaking emergency repairs, as some of the slabs were not in a condition to be reused.

“We are working at pace with Leicestershire County Council to source replacement slabs from the original supplier so that the pavement can be fully restored.”

A spokesperson for Leicestershire County Council said: “This is National Grid work, and we can confirm the current re-instatement of the area in question remains a temporary arrangement until the utility company returns to the site.

“We think it is unlikely there will be any permanent fix before the Christmas period, but that’s a matter for National Grid.

“We’ll be ensuring the appropriate permits are in place and will be chasing their submission.”